A newly discovered type of antibiotic could be an antidote for fatal infections that plague long-term care facilities, according to findings in Nature.
The new antimicrobial substance “has the ability to rapidly clear infections,” said lead author Kim Lewis, Ph.D., of Northeastern University. Lewis and his colleagues tested the antibiotic in mice infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
The antibiotic, teixobactin, attacks substances in the cell walls of harmful bacteria, the investigators found. Typical antibiotics target bacterial proteins.
From the February 01, 2015 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
